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City plans own emergency AM radio, phone alert system
"Be ready to go without essential services for 72 hours, plan meeting place for separated family members, advises emergency coordinator Burns
by Brian Simon
Just after 9 a.m., one morning last week, the phone rang in David Burns’ office. The caller asked Burns if he should purchase a gas mask. Burns drew a deep breath. It was a question he is used to hearing by now.
Burns is El Segundo’s emergency services coordinator, a position he has held since 1999. Before September 11 few people in town had even heard of him. Now residents regularly call him for answers and for hope.
Burns believes El Segundo is a safe place. He still enjoys nightly walks with his wife and four-year-old. He is confident in the abilities of local police and fire personnel to respond quickly in an emergency situation.
El Segundo and the South Bay as a whole are model communities in the area of disaster preparation, according to Congresswoman Jane Harman. In addition to the threat of earthquakes, El Segundo has long dealt with the potential environmental and security hazards that come with being sandwiched between a major airport, oil refinery, and waste treatment plant.
Add to that the presence of the aerospace industry and chemical manufacturers and it is no surprise that the city hired a full-time emergency services coordinator two years ago --well before there was serious thought of terrorist attacks on U.S. soil.
Burns heads a division within the El Segundo Fire Department with an annual budget of $110,000.
He reports to city department heads on a regular basis about emergency planning, and interacts with public agencies daily. He is currently revising the city’s general emergency plan -- a complex document several years in the making that involves researching county, state and federal safety regulations.
Lately, Burns’ attention has turned to hazard-specific plans. These detail the city’s response to cataclysmic events such as earthquakes, tsunamis, airline disasters and domestic terrorism.
He believes gas masks are a waste of time.
"You would need to have the mask with you around the clock and know exactly when to put it on," he said. "Then it must be properly fitted and sealed and have the right filters in place. Most of the filters found at surplus stores are factory defects. Plus the mask itself is a health hazard because it limits breathing."
Be prepared and be aware, Burns recommended. He maintained that the odds are higher of being injured in an earthquake than from a terrorist attack.
"Be ready to go without essential services for 72 hours and have a contingency plan with family members to reunite at a set location in case you are separated," Burns said.
The city schedules CERT (community emergency response team) classes on a per-need basis to teach residents how to be self-sufficient for 72 hours. Instructors show people how to secure homes, give first aid, shut off gas lines and transport injury victims. They also list items to have on hand to prepare for a natural disaster.
These include ample water supplies, canned food, pet food, batteries, radios, flashlights, candles, matches and first aid kits. Instructions on emergency preparation will soon be aired regularly on community cable stations 3 and 22, says Burns. In fact, the city is shoring up all its communication lines. Next year, it will have its own AM radio frequency. It is also upgrading its website to provide up-to-date emergency information. Meanwhile, the City Council has discussed improving local cell phone coverage and scheduling town hall meetings on public safety. The city’s Community Alert Network (CAN) allows it to phone any residents in an area of suspected bio or chemical release. "We can call 500-1000 phone numbers per hour, but the CAN system can only use listed numbers," Burns said. Residents with unlisted numbers can call Steve Tsumura (the city’s environmental safety manager), who will enter it into the CAN system while still maintaining confidentiality. Tsumura can be reached at 524-2242.
El Segundo relies on a mutual aid system. Manhattan Beach and Hawthorne backed up El Segundo police during a recent credit union robbery on Sepulveda Blvd.
If neighbor assistance is insufficient, El Segundo would declare a state of emergency and call on Los Angeles County, which has had a master mutual aid plan in place for 50 years. If the county cannot meet needs, regional mutual aid would kick. The most extreme cases would call for state or federal assistance. Domestic terrorism is a federal matter. The government would deploy biochemical caches to deal with potential anthrax threats and would dispatch medical strike teams to aid victims. Assistance would arrive within seven hours.
City officials are currently in contact with FBI officials on how to best deal with a potential anthrax exposure. Police Chief Jack Wayt is a member of the South Bay Terrorism Task Force, designed to protect local communities from future threats. Residents are asked to be aware of suspicious behavior and to call 911 if they receive unusual mail, such as letters with odd markings, wires, oily stains or strange odors. Parameters for what constitutes unusual mail are available on the FBI’s website (www.fbi.gov).
The city advises people to wash their hands before and after handling mail. Despite the many potential false alarms, Burns said residents are not wasting their time by calling local police.
"We will still come out -- it’s a full service town," he said. Flyers with public safety advisories are available at the fire and police stations.
When news of the World Trade Center attacks reached El Segundo, city manager Mary Strenn called all department heads together and activated the city’s emergency operations center. For two days, the city was in a state of heightened alert. Its main role was supportive--assisting airport and Los Angeles police personnel, FBI officials and businesses with security implementation, road closures and other related operations.
Though the city is back to its normal mode, it is keeping a close eye out for potential developments.
"I don’t think we’re in any more danger than anywhere else -- our public safety system is designed to work with all these threats," he said. "People are feeding on the frenzy of information from e-mails and the media that create fear and terror unnecessarily. If there is any credible threat regarding public safety, the FBI will release that information. As for El Segundo, our city is prepared as well as it can possibly be for a small town." ER